


𝓛𝓪 𝓛𝓪 𝓛𝓾

by BisforBread



Series: Scones With Blueberry Jam [5]
Category: Star Trek, Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: 5+1 Things, Daydreaming, Flowers, M/M, Romantic Fluff, Scones--and not the snack, Secret Relationship, This is not about a pastry, but it should be, kind of but not really
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-09
Updated: 2021-03-09
Packaged: 2021-03-17 21:21:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,482
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29598915
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BisforBread/pseuds/BisforBread
Summary: Everyone on the bridge is concerned when Doctor Mccoy is acting strange, but little do they know he's completely smitten with the chief engineer.or five times Jim got super close to figuring out the identity of Bones' secret lover and one time he accidentally did.
Relationships: James T. Kirk/Spock, Leonard "Bones" McCoy/Montgomery "Scotty" Scott
Series: Scones With Blueberry Jam [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2092422
Comments: 4
Kudos: 24





	𝓛𝓪 𝓛𝓪 𝓛𝓾

**i.**

Jim knew there was something up from the moment Bones stepped onto the bridge. He was here because "there was not a damn thing left to do" other than make sure Jim would arrive to his physical tomorrow, something he'd managed to avoid twice. That wasn't the strange part, no, that was a regular part of their weird friendship: Bones egging Jim to eat more salad and show up to his appointments.

The way Bones walked out the bridge--his tread. Was lighter than usual, soft clicks against the floor and Jim nearly jumped out of his skin when Bones suddenly showed up behind him because he was so used to deliberate, thundering footsteps instead of today. Today sounded like rain pattering against the window instead of the crackle of an oncoming storm.

It completely threw Jim off, but he ignored it and continued on. 

The really weird things started happening when Bones handed Jim his PADD to sign several patient reports(redshirts who had gotten hurt on the last mission and were being released) and Jim took it from him, sighing his usual, lazy curved signature before handing it back...but the doctor didn't take it. 

When he looked up to see what the problem was, he almost dropped the PADD on the floor. The look on Bones' face...

Bones was far off in another dimension, far away from PADDs and medical duties and especially Jim. His half-lidded eyes were swimming with thoughts and he was brushing his lips against the back of his knuckles absently, the other hand cradling his elbow. His eyes closed slowly and reopened with reluctance like he didn't want to leave the daydreams that lived only when he shut his eyes. 

"Bones," Jim held out the PADD for him to take, but the doctor didn't even flinch, didn't respond. 

"Bones," He repeated again more firmly, this time turning a few heads on the bridge. 

_"Bones."_ Still nothing. Not even an acknowledgment from him. More people were turning away from their stations, including Spock, Nyota, Sulu, and Chekov. 

"BONES." 

The doctor nearly jolted, eyes widening and for a second it looked like he couldn't remember how he got on the bridge.

Now everyone was staring at them. 

Bones looked from Jim to the PADD in his hand, and his face soured back into his normal, grumpy expression. 

"Just give me the damn PADD, Jim."

He snatched it and walked straight toward the turbolift, leaving the bridge crew utterly confused. 

But that was only the beginning. 

**ii.**

The second strange thing was at dinner in the rec room. Jim sat at a table in the corner, picking at his food and waiting for Bones to arrive, but he didn't. Of course, he was sitting with Spock which should've been fine on his own, but Bones always encouraged him to eat, so it would be hypocritical of him not to eat himself.

And that was another thing. He was always on top of everyone's health, especially Scotty who just forgot to eat as the hours blurred together with him fixing "his iron lady". 

Neither of them was here and Jim was starting to get irrationally worried when thirty minutes passed and there was no sign of Bones anywhere. 

"You should not worry so much," Spock commented next to him as if he could read his mind(which he could and Jim supported it). "The doctor is a grown man and thus does not need to be sought after." 

"I know, I know," Jim sighed, slumping further toward the table. "But it's not like him to miss a meal. He loves to take this time to enlighten me about all of the crew members who've done him wrong by showing up in his sickbay." 

"He is not gone forever, Jim. He is presumably just working late and is most likely nothing of consequence." As a subtle but ever-present reassurance, Spock's hand grazed over Jim's, tracing the back of it gently. 

"Yeah," The captain leaned into the touch gratefully and smiled. "Yeah, you're right." 

The rest of the meal passed without a Bones in sight. He never even popped in once for an apple or a piece of toast. When he finished eating, Jim walked over to a table where Uhura, Sulu, and Chekov were all sitting. They were the triumvirate of the gossip world and knew everything about everyone. If Jim was going to figure out anything happening on the ship, he'd go to them, just like he was doing now. 

"Evening Captain," Uhura nodded and the two others followed proper greetings, but Jim just put his hand up. 

"It's just Jim off the bridge, guys." He smiled. But then again...Nyota only called him captain when a) they were on duty or b) she had information he wanted to know(a common occurrence apparently). "Uhura, have you seen Bones anywhere?" 

"Yep," She popped the 'p'. "He came in here about 15 minutes before you did and replicated two different trays of food before leaving." 

Jim raised an eyebrow curiously. "Really? Two different trays?" How strange indeed...

"Yep." 

**iii.**

The next day, Jim went to his forced physical and when he walked through the doors, he almost dropped dead of shock(no he didn't but let him have his moment). 

There was Bones sitting at his desk, feet up like usual, and Jim expected him to be grumbling about report work or clumsy redshirts getting injured all the time, but no. 

There he was, laying back in his chair, a flower pressed to his nose, a sweet-smelling lily, and his coffee in front of him, full to the brim and completely untouched. _Weird_. He looked entirely content with the world at that moment, eyes closed serenely and a smile threatening to pull at his lips, a phenomenon Jim had never in all of his years of knowing him had ever witnessed. 

But then it was all over in a second when Bones opened his eyes and nearly dropped the flower at seeing Jim just standing there. 

"What is it now?" He barked a little too defensively, and internally, Jim knew he struck something good. 

"Physical," The captain flashed his shit-eating grin, and though he had no idea as to why he was smiling, Bones seemed embarrassed enough by it. For the rest of the physical, it was Jim trying not to smile(and failing) while Bones mumbled about the bitter taste of replicated coffee and how he wished he could get some real, authentic, bean water coffee, something he complained about often. 

The only question was where would Bones get a flower in deep space? And did he get it himself? By that look and that almost half-smile, the apparent answer would be _no_.

"Sorry, captain," Sulu sighed. "There was no one in here that I can recall." 

"Are you sure? No one at all?" This couldn't be the end of a fantastic mystery hunt that was unraveling in his hands. He needed to know how it ended. 

"Oh!" Sulu's eyes widened as if he remembered something. "Actually, there was-" He cut himself off, pursing his lips tightly. 

"What? What was it? Hikaru, talk to me--who was it?!" Jim's voice ended in an almost desperate whine. He was so close, yet so far. 

"I'm not supposed to say, he made me swear to secrecy." 

"He?!" 

Sulu put a hand over his mouth. "I've already said too much-" 

"No, keep going! The name, Sulu! Please?" Jim unlocked his famous puppy-eyed expression that, legend has it, no one could resist(except Mccoy of course). 

After a few moments, Sulu relented. "Alright...I won't give any names, but there was a person who came in early this morning looking for a lily." 

"Yes! That's the one!" Jim was practically exploding with excitement. Well, except for the part that he had no idea who it was or what he was trying to figure out to be quite frank. 

"I'll-I'll give you a hint, but I can't say anymore." 

A hint! This was totally a mystery now! And Jim was going to solve the _hell_ out of it!

"He was wearing a red shirt." 

A red shirt, a redshirt. A man in a red shirt offered Bones a lily--a real live _flower_ \--and it seems that the doctor didn't punch him in the face? Could it be...? 

No...

Bones had an admirer. 

**iv.**

The next incident happened a few weeks later when Jim was pacing about the medbay, flushed, confused, and absolutely in love. 

"You've been dating for like, a minute-" 

"Four weeks and six days." 

"-and now you're just ready to drop the three big words?" Bones gave him his 'you really should consider your life choices' look, not unusual for Bones when his expression was aimed toward Jim. 

"You know I've loved him so much longer than that, but I waited in case his feelings for me are new, but now I love him so much I think I might just explode. So--uh--what do I do?" 

Bones blinked once, blanched more like it, as if the answer was obvious. "Tell him." 

"Yeah, I know that. But how?" 

"Open your mouth and use your vocal cords to project sound in the form of words-" 

"Har har," Jim scowled, crossing his arms tightly. "You know I get nervous. Do you think I should practice?" 

"Practice what? Saying three words?" 

"It's much more than that and you know it. That phrase isn't given away with no weight. It's-it's heavy and layered." 

"Riiiiiiighhhhht. Okay," Mccoy rolled his eyes so far back into his head Jim thought they might come back around the other side. "Whatever you say." 

"You'll get there someday, Bones. Someday." Jim clapped his hands once. "Okay! Help me practice." 

"Alright, Romeo, say your one line." 

"Okay-" Jim ~~choked~~ coughed on his spit and cleared his throat roughly. "You ready?" 

"Ready as I'll ever be," Mccoy sighed, already tired of Jim's shit before he even started speaking. 

"Okay um. Spock. You and I. We're special to each other. We've seen things, been through hell and back, traveled the span of the stars.

What makes all of that worth it is because we did it together.

You and I.

Those words belong together, just like we belong together, just like 'I love you' belongs with our relationship.

Because I love you, with more than just my heart, but my soul--my katra--as well. It belongs to you. It always has." 

When Jim looked at Bones, he was shocked to see the misty-eyed blues of his eyes glowing. "That was...wow. Did you search that up or something?"

He sniffed awkwardly and Jim couldn't help but laugh. 

"So it was good?" 

"Yeah, kid. You tell Spock that and he'll literally melt into the floor. If you tell that to any single person, I'm positive they'll be yours like that," He snapped his fingers. 

"Oh Bones, that's sweet but I'm already in a relationship," Jim teased, scrunching his nose and he laughed out loud when he saw the way Bones' expression deadpanned into 'no-bullshit, not today' face. 

Strangely enough, something told Jim that all of the wooing in the world couldn't capture his heart...because--and maybe his Vulcan lover was rubbing off on him--he could almost feel the doctor's heart being caught by another. 

Ironically, as he walked out of sickbay and down the hall, he nearly ran into Scotty. 

"Hey, Scotty what's up?" Jim smiled, but there was something serious about the dark creases forming in Scotty's forehead. 

"Ah heard ye talking to the doctor and Ah thought it right to warn ye he's seeing someone." 

Jim would've laughed but the way Scotty's face remained serious told him that was a bad idea. He couldn't help but internally cringe at the thought of he and Bones in...love. They were barely friends(okay they were best friends) let alone declaring love for each other, and Jim shivered. But instead of telling him "I'm not interested in Bones", he was more fixed on the latter half of the sentence. 

"Seeing someone?" Jim ventured curiously, trying to conceal the utter excitement dancing in his soul. 

"Yeh. Er--he's in a relationship." 

_"A romantic relationship?"_

"Aye." 

"With _who_?" Jim's mouth was gaping like a codfish but he couldn't care less. This was _Bones_ they were talking about! Doctor. Grumpy Grumps Mccoy! Mister 'I'm Too Old To Be Set Up, Jim, Leave Me Alone'! And here Scotty was telling him that he'd snagged a lover, after all! He could hardly believe his ears!

"Well--er-It's just new that's been floatin' around. Ah'm not exactly sure-" Scotty answered quickly, and if Jim were actually paying attention he would've noticed his CEO was blushing madly. 

"Bones. Dating. _Wow_. Thanks, Scotty. I promise I won't uh... _flirt_ with Bones anymore," Jim flashed him his best smile and continued on his way, for he had a lot to unpack about his best friend and all of the strange things that were happening all of a sudden. 

**v.**

Wow, Bones is really out here in a relationship? Who would've thought? I mean, now he really is the definition of 'live long and get some. 

Jim was pulled out of his reverie by the voice of a yeoman and when he turned to face them, he was offered a PADD to sign. It was the weekly inventory work, where the crew took stock of their supplies and Jim just had to okay it with his signature. 

"Everything checks out?" He asked casually, expecting the usual 'yes' but instead, the reply was: 

"Well, mostly." 

Jim arched an eyebrow(something he learned from his boyfriend). "Mostly?" 

"We seem to have uh-" The yeoman cleared their throat awkwardly "-misplaced two bottles of white Aldebaran wine." 

"Really? Any idea where they went?" 

"Not a clue, sir." 

"Alright then, I'm sure it's nothing." 

**~~**

Jim smelled something rich and warm as he was walking down the hall, and it got stronger as he continued on his way to medbay. To him, it was the equivalent of bathing in warm chocolate, and the smell was so genuine, pure, and rare, it might as well have been a dream. 

Coffee. 

Not replicated coffee either, no, this was the good stuff. 

As Jim searched for the culprit, his eyes fell upon a coffee machine brewing coffee right on the counter behind Bones' desk. A real coffee machine. And next to it was a coffee bean grinder and a bag of dark roast coffee beans. 

Bones was at his desk, sipping from an abnormally large cup full of coffee and loving every second of it. 

"Where did you--coffee--how?" 

Bones smiled, actually smiled, and Jim had to pinch himself to make sure he wasn't dreaming. But when he opened his eyes, sure enough, Bones was still in front of him, smiling, and drinking the authentic coffee that made Jim want to melt into the floor. 

"How'd you get the coffee, Bones?" 

"It's a secret," He chuckled in response.

Okay, that was the weirdest thing of all. Bones doesn't chuckle. Bones also likes to spill the tea about everything, not one to beat around the bush. That was one of his best qualities, but keeping secrets. 

"Do you have an admirer?" Jim blurted out, but didn't regret it by the look on his best friend's face. "You do, don't you? I knew it! Who is he?" 

"He?" 

"Yes, _he_! Sulu told me the person who brought you flowers was a guy in a red shirt! So who is he?" 

"It's none of your business, Jim!" The way he said it was serious, but Mccoy was still smiling slightly. 

"What, you're not going to tell your best friend? I tell you everything!" 

"Even if I don't want you to!" 

"Oh, come on, Bonesy!" Jim slid onto Leonard's desk, wincing when a few PADDs clattered to the ground. "I'm not going to tell anyone if it makes you feel better." 

The doctor scoffed. "Yeah right. You can't keep a secret for your life." 

"You like him back don't you? That's why you're keeping his identity a secret!"

"That-" Bones coughed roughly, his face turning beet red, "That is not-" 

"I knew it! You don't just have an admirer, you like him!" 

"Shh, Jim! Be quiet!" The doctor looked around nervously for a second, making sure no one was around to listen. "Don't you have a ship to run?" 

"My perfect XO is keeping everything afloat on the bridge. I'm sure I could spend a few more minutes egging you until you crack-" 

Bones jumped out of his seat at the prospect of his best friend coercing him into giving up information he definitely didn't want to give out, so he ushered Jim out of his med bay, mumbling about having an appointment with a nonexistent patient. 

The captain stood outside of the medbay for way too long, just grinning thinking about Bones getting all flustered and nervous about this secret guy he was totally seeing. He pressed the request for the turbolift and was practically buzzing with excitement, and grinned at the person in the turbolift. 

"Hey, Scotty! Getting out?" It escaped Jim's notice that he was carrying a bottle of Jack Daniels with a red bow tied on top. 

The Engineer smiled. "Aye, Ah am, captain." 

Jim did however notice the beautiful silver watch on his wrist. "Wow! Nice watch!"

Scotty looked down and the smile on his face grew immensely. "Thanks! It was a gift. Fire-proof and resistant to oil and grease, which is helpful considering mah line of work. It's really-jus' something grand." He admired it with love and affection, and Jim was glad to see his CEO so happy. 

"Well, that's great, Scotty. See you around, okay?" 

"Aye, captain," Scotty responded, and once again, Jim missed the important thing that would've solved all of his questions and inquiries about Bones. Because he failed to notice Scotty was heading to Med Bay with no injuries and a bottle of Jack Daniels with a ribbon on it.

Also, Jim should've made the astute observation that--yes--Scotty was a man. And wearing a red shirt. 

**v + 1.**

Leonard had been getting a little more careless. He used to be so cautious, making sure that no one knew about their relationship. With time, he'd gotten more comfortable with their love, yes, it was love. What other word could possibly be used? He'd gotten more comfortable and became less worried about everyone around them, got carried away by the warm feeling that ignited his soul and puddled in the heat of his cheeks. 

He got caught daydreaming on the bridge. Monty pulled him aside before he stepped onto the turbo lift and just said "you're my world". Those three simple words were not "I love you" but they may as well have been because Leonard melted and said, "You're mine". He then got into the turbolift and tried to hide his smile, tried to stop the utter happiness that seemed to flow from every part of him. He thought it was so obvious to everyone on the bridge as he crossed it, and he felt like he was soaring. It was stupid and soapy and about a million other things, but for someone like Leonard, who never felt this way about anything, well it was huge. 

He was finally starting to understand what people were talking about when they talked about their partners in such high regard. Because Monty definitely deserved all of it. He was something else. He walked right into the storm and swept Len off his feet. 

And it felt like it too, despite the fact that they'd been dating for seven months. Breathtaking. 

And on the bridge, he was dreaming of taking Monty back home during the summer to Georgia. Setting a picnic blanket out on the roof as they watched stars and ate juicy peaches, they were the best in July. They had this huge peach tree in the yard when Leonard was growing up, massive. To share that with his love would be something else, like a combination of the two best aspects of his life: Georgia and Monty. 

And then he was back on the bridge and Jim was looking at him all bewildered and confused. They were all looking at him with concern. 

Leonard had replicated two trays to take to Engineering because Monty needed to eat, and he wanted to work, so they made a compromise by eating in Engineering--anything to get some food in him. Otherwise, Monty would just forget and skip meals on accident, something Leonard couldn't allow to happen when the Enterprise relied on him so greatly. 

The flowers. Lilies. They were Leonard's favorite. He was having a rough day and Montgomery always seemed to have the cure to his problems. 

The coffee machine was an early gift for their seven month anniversary and Leonard was so excited, he kissed Montgomery right there and then without even bothering to look if anyone was watching(and no one was but still it was a big step) and Montgomery had chuckled against his lips, pleasantly surprised. 

The watch was his early gift for their seven-month anniversary to Montgomery. It was Monty's dad's watch, and one day, the glass cracked and the look on his face was so sad. So naturally, Leonard got it repaired, with a special durable glass as well as a special coating that protected against heat damage. He'd never forget the way Montgomery's eyes lit up when he opened it. It was one of those moments from a fairytale. Perfect. 

And Leonard knew it was stupid and soapy to think like that, but Montgomery made it impossible for him to think otherwise. Tonight, there was (finally) a time to celebrate themselves and their relationship after all of their long hard hours slaving away to the Enterprise. It hadn't helped that Jim was around every corner waiting for Leonard to falter or accidentally spill the beans. They'd gotten two bottles of the best wine in all of Starfleet and set up a picnic in Observatory 4 where no one would find them because no one ever went there. They would've gone with bourbon, but tonight seemed like a special occasion. 

They set up a picnic blanket and made sandwiches that went well with the wine, sitting down in front of the viewscreen to watch the stars passing by. The sandwiches had been eating long ago and now they were just sitting there, leaning against each other and sipping on the wine, maybe slightly tipsy. 

"Why don't we do this more often? This is nice," Leonard sighed, nuzzling his nose against Montgomery's warm neck, who chuckled softly at the sensation. 

"We never had the time before," Montgomery answered next to him, his arm wrapped around his partner. "Ah'm glad we do now." 

Leonard chuckled at a thought that had popped into his head. "You know, Jim's onto us. He's not far off, though. He thinks it's someone from engineering." 

"Well, there's plenty 'a men in engineering. If he hasnae figured it out by now, the poor lad'll likely never. Probably another week 'fore our secret's out." 

"Then this'll be the best week of my life," Leonard smiled as he kissed his boyfriend, who grinned in return. "After that-" He groaned half-heartedly "-everyone'll be in our business, nosy as they are." 

"The gossip'll last a week at most, and then we'll still be 'ere. Just as we are now." 

"Like total saps." 

"Like total saps," Montgomery grinned again and kissed Leonard who was chuckling and feeling the heat rise to his face as if this was their first date all over again. 

_And may love be your keeper..._

Something his mother had whispered to him once upon a time. 

**~~**

So, finally, Jim had gathered the courage to tell Spock he loved him and of course, Spock kissed him back and Jim knew through their contact he felt the same way. It was one of those moments where a person sparkles despite everything else. The events that followed...well, let's just say were NSFC(not safe for Chekov) and it was a night that never seemed to end, a night Jim would never forget. 

Except, he forgot his PADD on the observation deck where he told Spock those three magical words. It was observation deck four, the one no one ever went to so it was always empty. He had dinner with his boyfriend in the rec room(nothing out of the ordinary, but Jim is dramatic) so he needed to make this quick, a quick trip. 

He walked into the Observation Deck and to his surprise, he heard hushed voices. 

"You know, Jim's onto us. He's not far off, though. He thinks it's someone from engineering." 

That would be Bones' voice. Jim turned to the direction of his voice and found the silhouette of Mccoy leaning against someone whose arm was wrapped around him, sitting on a picnic blanket. In front of the stars. Talk about sappy. 

Jim should've left, but he couldn't. He would figure out the identity of Bones' mystery man. 

"Well, there's plenty 'a men in engineering." That voice! It can't be! No, it _has_ to be! "If he hasnae figured it out by now, the poor lad'll likely never. Probably another week 'fore our secret's out." 

Scotty? 

No...

A redshirt in engineering, Scotty's warning about Mccoy dating, the conversation in the turbolift...

It all strangely made sense. 

Jim grabbed his PADD and slipped out before anyone noticed and then proceeded to sprint down the corridors until he reached the rec room, sitting down with a huff next to Spock. 

Spock looked at him with confusion and slight amusement. "Captain, are you alright?" 

"Just fine, Spock. And it's Jim. We're off duty silly goose!" Jim gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. 

"Silly g-?" 

"Anyway, I was right. I was so right about Bones. He's seeing someone." 

"May I inquire as to who?" 

"I-" At that moment, Jim could've spilled his guts right there, and it didn't fail to register that half of the rec room was now staring at him. He could totally be the biggest gossip for forever. People would come to him for all of the juiciest intel. But then he thought about Bones, who never looked as happy as he did next to Scotty and relishing the privacy of their relationship. Bones was his best friend, and kept Jim's secret crush on Spock under wraps for a year and a half. He owed him more than anything that could be put into words. Jim could at least pay it back by keeping this a secret for just a little bit longer. 

"Nevermind, it's nothing." 

Then he reconsidered. 

"I'll give it a week." 


End file.
